Danny Cannon
| birth_place = Luton, England | death_date = | death_place = | nationality = British, American | other_names = | occupation = Director Executive Producer Screenwriter | years_active = 1984–present | known_for = CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Gotham Nikita Judge Dredd I Still Know What You Did Last Summer | notable_works = }} Danny Cannon (born October 5, 1967 in Luton, England) is an Emmy-nominated film and television producer, director and writer, known for executive producing the billion dollar CSI: Crime Scene Investigation series franchise (also responsible for directing the pilot episode), as well as simultaneously executive producing the CSI: Miami and CSI: NY spinoffs. At one time, Cannon had five television series on-air, while acting as executive producer. One of the top paid television directors in the entertainment industry and the only TV pilot director to also operate as a key writer, Cannon has directed 15 television pilots, 12 of which have been ordered to series, including: Training Day (2017), Gotham (2014), The Tomorrow People (2013), Nikita (2010), Dark Blue (2009), The Forgotten (2009), and Eleventh Hour (2008). Feature film directorial credits include Geostorm (2017) , I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998), Judge Dredd (1995), and The Young Americans (1993). Cannon is currently the executive producer (and a writer/director) of FOX's superhero series Gotham (2014-2019), which won the Critics Choice Award for Most Exciting New Series in 2014. Following the show's season five series finale in Spring 2019, Cannon will executive produce a 10-episode, straight-to-series Batman prequel for Epix, titled Pennyworth, and will direct the premiere episode. Career Early career .]] Cannon began making films at the age of 16 in 1984, and started a youth experimental theatre group at 33 Arts Centre. Using the centre's facilities, he was a prolific director of video dramas and collaborated with a number of other directors in different roles including cameraman. A major influence was the centre's video maker, Dermot Byrne, with whom Cannon worked on a number of projects. It was at 33 that he met the future film composer David Arnold who played in a band that rehearsed there. Cannon convinced Arnold that he could compose soundtracks for his and other people's videos. Arnold would later compose his first professional score for Cannon's debut feature 'The Young Americans'. In 1987, he was awarded the BBC Young Filmmaker of the Year Award, by Alan Parker, for a 40-minute short called Sometimes. The following year he attend the National Film and Television School, from which he graduated in 1990. His intermediate film, 'Play Dead' was screened on channel 4, a rare honor for a student still at the school. He then wrote and directed his graduation film Strangers (1990), which premiered at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. 1990s Cannon's professional career began with adverts for James Garrett and later RSA. This led to his debut feature The Young Americans (1993). He then signed on to direct the big-budget Sylvester Stallone Sci-Fi Judge Dredd in 1995. In 1998 he directed two features, the teen slasher film I Still Know What You Did Last Summer and he directed Ray Liotta, Anjelica Huston and Jeremy Piven in Phoenix. 2000s Cannon's immersion into primetime television began when he was hired by Jerry Bruckheimer to produce and direct the pilot episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation in 2000. Cannon is credited with creating the look and visual style of the CSI , which ran for 15 seasons, earning a total of 39 Emmy nominations and spawning three spinoff shows. He went on to write and direct many episodes of the flagship series, while overseeing the production as executive producer. Simultaneously, he also executive produced both CSI: Miami, which premiered in 2003 (and directed the pilot of), and CSI: NY (2004). Stemming from his personal passion and experience with the sport of football, in 2005, Cannon directed the film Goal!. In 2006, he returned to television with the CBS television pilot, Capital Law, about a group of legal associates trying to make partner at a powerful Washington, D.C.–based law firm. In 2007, Cannon co-created TNT's crime drama series starring Dylan McDermott called Dark Blue and directed the pilot episode. The following year he produced and directed 'The Eleventh Hour' for CBS, which ran for one season. In 2010, Cannon joined The CW action series Nikita, as director and executive producer. It successfully ran for four seasons on the network. In 2011, he executive produced and directed the pilot FOX crime/mystery series Alcatraz along with J. J. Abrams,for WBTV. In 2016, Cannon was brought on to direct reshoots for the feature film Geostorm, in an attempt to help save the studios over budget production. In 2017, Cannon replaced Antoine Fuqua as the director of the CBS drama series pilot Training Day , starring Bill Paxton, based on the 2001 Denzel Washington feature film.He stayed on as the show's executive producer. From 2014–2018 Cannon executive produced the television series Gotham, for which he directed the pilot of , along with writing and directing several episodes during the series' five year run. Under Cannon's creative guidance the show has been nominated for ten Primetime Emmy Awards , and in 2017 won its first Emmy for Outstanding Special and Visual Effects in a Supporting Role In 2018, it was announced that Gotham will produce its fifth and final season, premiere in 2019. Upcoming projects Partnering with his Gotham writer-producer partner Bruno Heller , Cannon is currently in production on Pennyworth, a Batman-esque prequel set in 1960s London, which documents the early years of Batman's butler Alfred Pennyworth. Cannon executive produces along with Heller, and will direct multiple episodes including the series premiere, which will air on Epix. Filmography Television Film Awards and nominations Personal life Cannon has two daughters. He plays football regularly with Hollywood United F.C., a local Los Angeles club team consisting of mostly celebrities and former professional footballers, who play socially against other local teams for friendly matches and charity events. References External links * Category:English television directors Category:English television producers Category:English television writers Category:English film producers Category:English film directors Category:Hollywood United players Category:People from Luton Category:1968 births Category:Living people Category:Television writers Category:Primetime Emmy Award winners Category:Science fiction film directors Category:Action film directors Category:Association footballers not categorized by position